Football: Koch brings perspective to Elsik game Saturday

FOOTBALL

ADAM KING, CHRONICLE CORRESPONDENT

Published 5:30 am, Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Memorial coach Gary Koch and Elsik head man Bill Barron have been on opposite sidelines of both big and small games throughout their many seasons. The last time was a big one: In 1996 during the bi-district playoffs, when Memorial won 10-7 in overtime.

Barron also was the head coach at Waltrip when Koch was defensive coordinator at Stratford, and Koch remembers well their teams scrapping both during the regular season and playoffs.

In 1987 at Stratford, Koch’s unit held Waltrip to a touchdown in a 17-16 win as Stratford went on to the Class 5A state final. Barron later went to Odessa before returning to Houston to coach Elsik, taking the Rams to the 2002 Division I state semifinals, where they lost to eventual champ Converse Judson.

Since then the Rams haven’t been past the bi-district round, but Koch, whose team faces Elsik at 6 p.m. Saturday at Tully Stadium in a District 18-5A matchup, said Barron is no football slouch.

“Bill has been around for a while,” Koch said. “He knows what he’s doing and he’s a good coach and a longtime acquaintance.”

And Barron has been doing more with less this year. He lost all his defensive starters and had just three back on offense, but the team is 2-2 (2-1 in district) after winning just four games last season.

“They’re going to come right at you,” Koch said. “Strake put it on them pretty good last week (43-14). Part of that was Elsik had two turnovers. But that was that week, and this week they’re big in the offensive line and defensive line and aggressive up the field on defense. They present a lot of problems for you.”

Memorial (3-1, 2-1) is equally adept at doing more with less, a testament to Koch’s coaching ability — although he always refuses the credit. This year, however, Memorial seems to have it all working together: Depth, talent, leadership and the ability to win in more ways than one.

The offense struggled mightily in 2007, but it’s been a near-perfect asset this year. The Mustangs are averaging 310 yards per game, and quarterback Davis Miller has been outstanding, throwing for 425 yards and five touchdowns to only one interception. He has a special connection with receiver Daniel Neumann, who has 16 catches for 190 yards and four touchdowns, making Neumann the second-leading receiver in 18-5A.

“We’re just more balanced this year and we’re throwing it pretty effectively,” Koch said. “Davis Miller has gotten the bulk of the snaps at QB and is kind of our man at this point. He’s done a good job running our offense and for the most part making good decisions with the ball.

“It’s a credit to Davis and the receivers — they know each other, and all were starters last year. Just like anything else, you’ve been there and done it and you have a feel for what’s going on and know the situations you’re in and the pitfalls and know how to avoid them better.”

“We were a little younger last year and we’ve matured a little bit,” Koch said. “They’re not in awe of the lights and the band and they can focus on execution. This year we’re not relying solely on the offensive line, where we’ve been experienced in the past. With seniors Royal Mosher, Jacob Figueroa and Will Hood back along with Renaudin, that helps, but our passing game has been better than it has been in the past.”

The defense has continued its mastery, holding foes to a paltry 115.5 yards per game, lowest among district teams by nearly half as much (Strake Jesuit is second at 229.2), and 8.3 points.

“They play a good team scheme, and we have a nice mix of returning players and new-to-the-varsity players,” Koch said. “They move well to the ball and understand our scheme. They’re physical enough to hang in there and play with the people we have so far.

“Plus they’re not making the big mistake. If we have a breakdown, it’s a smaller situation because we’re playing good team schemes and playing a team concept. When you don’t play that way, a breakdown by one player can allow the other team to smoke you for a big play. But we’re playing really well together.”

Koch understands, however, just how fragile victory can be. If not for two turnovers against Strake that led to scores, Memorial would have won the game and currently be undefeated.

The Mustangs corrected the problem, however, turning the ball over once against Stratford in a 28-10 win and not at all against Northbrook in a 41-7 victory.

“You prepare and you look at the things that happened that were negative,” Koch said. “Were they decision issues or technique breakdowns and you address those and go from there. Did we point out those particular ones and harp on them, not really. We talked about ball security and decision-making, but nothing more than we normally do.

“Considering what happened the first week, we’ve moved in the right direction.”